March 19, 2012 10:04:53 PM by
Harvey Silverglate
The New Jersey Star Ledger has a piece out today in which Paul Mulshine discusses the recent conviction of Dharun Ravi. Ravi shared a Rutgers dorm room with Tyler Clementi, a gay student who later committed suicide, and faced charges stemming from his setting up a camera to spy on Clementi. In comments I made for the article, I suggest that while Clementi's privacy rights were clearly violated by Ravi's camera setup, the New Jersey legislature's attempt to create new hate crime and anti-harassment laws in response to the Rutgers case is an overreaction that violates the principle of equal application of the law. This case should have been a matter of a fundamental violation of privacy rights. Instead, the New Jersey legislature and Rutgers administrators are fighting an ideological battle to make political correctness the law of the land.
March 13, 2012 10:21:11 PM by
Harvey Silverglate
Two days ago I was asked to appear on WBUR Radio's "Radio Boston" in order to discuss a recent case that has gotten quite a bit of press. The case involves two Attleboro, MA teenagers who were arrested after posting comments on Facebook about school shootings. Slate's Emily Bazelon and I discussed the charges before taking questions from callers.
You can find my interview after the jump.
February 12, 2012 10:03:37 PM by
Harvey Silverglate
On Thursday, February 16th, David Boeri, a friend, colleague, and sometimes co-conspirator is going to be joining WCVB Television's "Chronicle" to discuss an absolutely outrageous case of injustice: the story of a 16 year old girl who was coerced by the Worcester police department into confessing to the murder of her infant.
The girl, Nga Truong, spent three years in jail before her release following a judge's order. After WBUR’s story aired in December, “Anatomy of A Bad Confession” prompted public outrage nationwide, calls for changes in the law and discipline of the police officers involved.
Now, Boeri continues to follow Truong’s story with a special half-hour report and an exclusive television interview with her for WCVB-TV. It airs on Chronicle this Thursday evening at 7:30. I truly believe that this is must-see TV.
For more, click here.